I've said it before, but the daedric quests in this game are really on a whole new level. I think they've done a fantastic job with them. I just did Vaermina's quest, and while it was obvious that it was a daedric quest from the start, I was pleasantly surprised by the way it was integrated into the game without having to visit the shrine first.

The second surprise came, when, near the end, Vaermina herself spoke to me. She told me that the man that had been helping me was an imposter, and planned to betray me with the Skull. But... he seemed trustworthy to me.

At first I didn't know it was Vaermina talking, and I thought it might be Mara. Had it been Mara, warning me that her priest planned to betray me, I probably would have heeded her. But because Vaermina signed off on the message herself... I was skeptical. So I didn't follow her advice and (since this is the spoilers section), I let him live.

The surprise came after that. He lived, he didn't betray me, he destroyed the Skull, and the quest ended. Complete. The only reward I got was that he offered to be a follower, which I already have dozens of. I'm totally shocked, but totally pleased at this! I basically did a daedric quest and go no reward, which is unprecedented. But, the really nice thing is that my decision had an impact on the outcome of the quest. Let me repeat that:

My decision had an impact on the outcome of the quest. By deciding to be nice and give the guy a chance to prove himself, I ended up with a meager tangible reward, but a substantial moral one. Nicely done with that Bethesda.

See how easy it is though? Just let player choices actually lead somewhere now and then and you get wonderful results. The linearity of the rest of the game is something of a bore, but if this quest is any indication, I think we can look forward to some intriguing quests in the future.

Please, hear me. That was a very meaningful quest, and such things are disappointingly rare in Skyrim.

+ 1, also well presented argument...

Agreed, one of the only worthwhile quests in the game.

Impact on the game based on the players actions is a whole helluva lot more engaging than "LOL GO HERE GET THING COME BACK HAZ GOLDZZZZZ!" Bethesda.

Hopefully they will realize this in coming DLC.

Easily the best quest in the game. The whole dream thing? Amazingly well done. Erandur is one of the most well fleshed out characters in the game. Don't worry, the skull svcks anyway, so Erandur is muuuuuch better.

Totally agree, the Daedric Lords in this game holds a lot more true to their persona by giving quests with moral ambiguity although I wouldn't say its the ONLY worthwhile quest. Sanguine's quest had me laughing hard for a few especially when I found out who I was engaged to!

He really is. I decided to finally replace Lydia with Erandur and not only is he friendly, but extremely talkative. And not about random things either, he'll comment about his past and the area you're currently in. He also has some pretty specific dialogue when it comes to dungeon diving. Dismissive of Bandits, and wary of Conjurers, etc.

I remember thinking that he was going to betray me since he used to be, er, an evil priesty guy or whatever. I've played too much between then and now to remember exactly >.>. I decided to actually trust him after he confronted those two guys that he knew from before and we killed them together.


I'd been hoping for that since the beginning! My first follower was so quiet unless he got in the way and then he would just say "Oh." I'll have to go back and get Erandur sometime.

I've used him as my follower ever since. You guys are completely right on that point to.

He's got to be the only follower that talks about the things that are going on around us! He tells me what he knows about vampires, he tells me about the last time he was in Solitude (when we go), he tells me all about his past as a priest when we visit shrines.

This is ridiculous! (In a good way). Do any of the other followers behave like this?

The official guide says he is the only one that will comment on your current location but I can't say for sure myself. Personally I killed him and now I have a cool looking staff.

Absolutely agree here, definitely one of my favorite quests. You actually get to finish the quest in a good way if you so choose, watching Erandur banish the Skull to Oblivion just as he said he would was satisfying. I came with the intention to cleanse the place, and you can. If only you could do the same in Molag Bal's...

Plus, Erandur is easily my top follower. He talks some but not too much and is pretty powerful on the backlines at range while my character gets in close to mix it up with the enemy.

It dissapoints me that I have to kill him. I'm craving the trophies for this game (I know, I'm playing it wrong etc etc) and I need the Skull of Corruption for the Oblivion Walker trophy. A shame - Erandur is such a nice guy. One of the better characters I've met - certainly the coolest follower.

I killed the guy i have better uses for a powerful staff than a useless follower that gets in my way !

Booooo!

I had saved right before he walked up to the staff and I'm glad I did. When I heard the disembodied female voice, I thought I had better do as told - who disobeys a daedric god, right? But after he was dead (decapitated) at my feet, the staff in my posession I wondered..... so I loaded the save, let him finish his ritual and.... he didn't attack! Maybe this was a ploy? He's lying and has the staff afterall? So I killed him to doublecheck. Sure enough, the staff was not in his inventory. So he WAS doing the right thing and Vaermina was LYING! So I loaded the save again, let him live and am happier for it. Knowing I chose the right path and was not coerced into doing a god's bidding was well worth the staff being destroyed.

I killed him because the Staff is cool, my Argonian hates Dark Elves, and followers like Cicero, the Azura Priest, and Ghorbash are more than enough followers for me. They are useful and Cicero is the best companion.

lol

I love how killing him twice and then reloading counts as doing the right thing

String theory bro

I killed him because you should always listen to the voices in your head that tell you to kill.

Seriously though, I have always been rewarded by some dark god by doing this.

I actually got rewarded twice one time when I killed both sides! During the

Ugh really? Why can't more followers do this! T.T I'd use more if they weren't such mutes...even though I am married to Lydia...

You have those adjectives reversed... The stupid staff doesn't even stay on the wall properly. I keep finding it on the floor as if it's trying to escape my house.

I actually apologized to the screen before I did it! And it was clean and quick. And I enchanted his robes so I could name them "Erandur's Robes", and wear them with pride.

Cicero does this you know

I was trying to play as a good guy on my first playthrough and let him complete his ritual because to me it was either a daedra lord lying to me or he betrays me and I stick an axe in his head. I was a bit surprised that you didnt get a reward except him as a follower but agree it was a great quest because not only was the npc interesting and the action different then the rest of the game but your actions had an actual effect on the game.

This is unique as far as im aware and im glad that it was written to have a possible ending and not a shoehorned do this or fail. I found most of the daedra quests to be a bit dissapointing as they allow for variety and not just go here and kill this. The summoned ghost from the dark brotherhood has some good dialogue about locations and actions but these are focused around the questline and your mount etc. For standard play his repeated quotes get annoying.

Sanguines questline is the opposite. Although funny in parts its a complete lack of control on the players part and being the butt of a cosmic joke and a pop culture reference then anything that will change your game.

I think a lot of people have an issue with Molag Bals quest, which also comes out of nowhere instead of a shrine. For good characters the only option is to walk away. Personally I think this is perfect, because it adds guilt to a good character...

and that wacky Bal, he's not really one for free choice... sorry Good Guy, you have to be my evil b***h... no.. no choice.. unless you want to sit on your backside for a millenia.. I'm a god.. more patient that you.. I'll wait until you crack. Think of all those who will die if you do not do as I command.
Oblivions had you making a good guy do something evil.... this time the good guy was YOU. I loved it to be honest. I could have walked away, but curiousity to see how things turn out were my downfall, and the daedric prince had his way with me and left me feeling dirty.